RealtyTrac evaluated metro areas using several criteria from unemployment rates to home price increases to create its first Housing Market Recovery Index.

With the national index at 100, Wilmington scored 92 – among the 20 weakest markets.

By far the strongest was Rochester, N.Y., with 217.

But a RealtyTrac executive made a distinction about his company's findings.

"It's important to see this as a recovery index, rather than a market health index," RealtyTrac Vice President Daren Blomquist said Wednesday. "We're not saying that these are the best markets in the nation."

Rather, he said, they have rebounded the most and are leading the recovery.

Sales of homes in the Wilmington area, for instance, soared 38 percent last month compared with a year earlier. Prices also inched higher, but they weren't up as much as in many other markets measured by the index.

It didn't quote any of Wilmington's statistics, he said, noting that local home prices are up as are the number of homes sold while the length a property has to wait before selling is dropping.

"While the Wilmington housing market overall is trending up, we acknowledge that challenges toward a full recovery still exist," Alex said in a statement earlier Wednesday. "However, we believe that characterizing our housing market in such a negative light is short-sighted and inaccurate."

Donna Girardot, executive officer of the Wilmington Cape Fear Home Builders Association, also took exception to RealtyTrac's ranking of the Port City's housing recovery.

"The Wilmington market is in a recovery mode," she said. "One of the biggest drags on our economy is our unemployment rate" and substantial improvement in it "won't happen overnight."

"Many other areas have a had a head start on us" in the recovery, Girardot continued, "because they have not had to face some of the unique coastal regulatory and environmental issues encountered in resurrecting many of our distressed subdivisions."

But she added that "our permits and sales have increased to a healthy rate and sellers and buyers are very optimistic."

She predicted that Wilmington will turn the corner next year, "and I would welcome RealtyTrac back to reassess our region at that time."

The 20 metro areas lagging the farthest behind nationwide figures also included Virginia Beach as well as Pensacola and Ocala, Fla., Mobile, Ala., Philadelphia and Cincinnati. Baltimore had the lowest index ranking at 80.

Among cities leading the nation in the housing recovery were San Francisco, Atlanta and Spartanburg and Greenville, S.C.

RealtyTrac used seven categories – all weighted the same – to come up with its index.

No. 1 was the unemployment rate. Wilmington's 9.4 percent ranked well above the nation's 7.6 percent, a negative. Rochester came in at 7 percent.

Another negative was the percentage of home sales classified as distressed, meaning foreclosures and short sales. They represented 27 percent of the market here, while the figure nationally was 23 percent and Rochester's, 7 percent.

Alex said that "part of the recovery process is working through our foreclosure inventory," which he attributed in part to the Wilmington area's "higher than normal percentage of vacation and secondary homes."

Wilmington's home prices were up 13 percent from their lowest point, according to the index, while the national figure was 19 percent.

However, the figure is pretty healthy considering that the low point was only in January 2012, Blomquist said. Rochester's prices were up 93 percent by contrast, but were coming back from a much steeper decline, he said.

Institutional investors represented 4 percent of the market in Wilmington while the national average was 9 percent.

"Institutional investors are viewed as a positive because they are such a big part of the recovery," Blomquist said. "The fact that Wilmington is drawing smaller percentage of investors is a negative."

But positives for the Port City included a 90 percent drop in the number of foreclosures. The national average decline was 65 percent.

The percentage of deals that were for cash also was a plus as was the percentage of homes that are under water – that is, their mortgages exceed their market value. That stood at 22 percent, below the national average of 26 percent.

<p>Though home prices have risen 13 percent, Wilmington's climb out of the housing downturn is among the 20 weakest in the nation, according to a research company's new recovery index.</p><p>RealtyTrac evaluated metro areas using several criteria from unemployment rates to home price increases to create its first Housing Market Recovery Index.</p><p>With the national index at 100, Wilmington scored 92 – among the 20 weakest markets.</p><p>By far the strongest was Rochester, N.Y., with 217.</p><p>But a RealtyTrac executive made a distinction about his company's findings.</p><p>"It's important to see this as a recovery index, rather than a market health index," RealtyTrac Vice President Daren Blomquist said Wednesday. "We're not saying that these are the best markets in the nation."</p><p>Rather, he said, they have rebounded the most and are leading the recovery.</p><p>Sales of homes in the Wilmington area, for instance, soared 38 percent last month compared with a year earlier. Prices also inched higher, but they weren't up as much as in many other markets measured by the index. </p><p>The local industry's reaction to the index was negative.</p><p>The index misrepresented the facts and was confusing to the consumer, said R.J. Alex, president of the <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic9987"><b>Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors</b></a>, Wednesday.</p><p>It didn't quote any of Wilmington's statistics, he said, noting that local home prices are up as are the number of homes sold while the length a property has to wait before selling is dropping.</p><p>"While the Wilmington housing market overall is trending up, we acknowledge that challenges toward a full recovery still exist," Alex said in a statement earlier Wednesday. "However, we believe that characterizing our housing market in such a negative light is short-sighted and inaccurate."</p><p>Donna Girardot, executive officer of the Wilmington Cape Fear Home Builders Association, also took exception to RealtyTrac's ranking of the Port City's housing recovery.</p><p>"The Wilmington market is in a recovery mode," she said. "One of the biggest drags on our economy is our unemployment rate" and substantial improvement in it "won't happen overnight."</p><p>"Many other areas have a had a head start on us" in the recovery, Girardot continued, "because they have not had to face some of the unique coastal regulatory and environmental issues encountered in resurrecting many of our distressed subdivisions."</p><p>But she added that "our permits and sales have increased to a healthy rate and sellers and buyers are very optimistic."</p><p>She predicted that Wilmington will turn the corner next year, "and I would welcome RealtyTrac back to reassess our region at that time."</p><p>The 20 metro areas lagging the farthest behind nationwide figures also included Virginia Beach as well as Pensacola and Ocala, Fla., Mobile, Ala., Philadelphia and Cincinnati. Baltimore had the lowest index ranking at 80.</p><p>Among cities leading the nation in the housing recovery were San Francisco, Atlanta and Spartanburg and Greenville, S.C. </p><p>RealtyTrac used seven categories – all weighted the same – to come up with its index.</p><p>No. 1 was the unemployment rate. Wilmington's 9.4 percent ranked well above the nation's 7.6 percent, a negative. Rochester came in at 7 percent.</p><p>Another negative was the percentage of home sales classified as distressed, meaning foreclosures and short sales. They represented 27 percent of the market here, while the figure nationally was 23 percent and Rochester's, 7 percent. </p><p>Alex said that "part of the recovery process is working through our foreclosure inventory," which he attributed in part to the Wilmington area's "higher than normal percentage of vacation and secondary homes."</p><p>Wilmington's home prices were up 13 percent from their lowest point, according to the index, while the national figure was 19 percent.</p><p>However, the figure is pretty healthy considering that the low point was only in January 2012, Blomquist said. Rochester's prices were up 93 percent by contrast, but were coming back from a much steeper decline, he said.</p><p>Institutional investors represented 4 percent of the market in Wilmington while the national average was 9 percent. </p><p>"Institutional investors are viewed as a positive because they are such a big part of the recovery," Blomquist said. "The fact that Wilmington is drawing smaller percentage of investors is a negative."</p><p>But positives for the Port City included a 90 percent drop in the number of foreclosures. The national average decline was 65 percent. </p><p>The percentage of deals that were for cash also was a plus as was the percentage of homes that are under water – that is, their mortgages exceed their market value. That stood at 22 percent, below the national average of 26 percent.</p><p><i></p><p><a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic99"><b>Wayne Faulkner</b></a>: 343-2329</p><p>On <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/news41"><b>Twitter</b></a>: @bizniznews</i></p>